Hydroacoustic noise from different geometries

Turbulent flow around bluff bodies generates pressure fluctuations which propagate as acoustic waves. Differences in the shape of a body can affect frequencies and amplitudes of the propagating pressure signals. In the present work three elementary geometries (sphere, cube and prolate spheroid), immersed in a uniform water flow, are examined in order to analyze the differences of the resulting hydroacoustic fields. The turbulent flow at ReA = 4430 (based on the cross-sectional area of the bodies) is reproduced through wall-resolving Large-Eddy Simulation and the hydroacoustic far-field is analyzed by adopting the Ffowcs Williams and Hawkings analogy. The quadrupole term of the acoustic equation is first reformulated in the convective form and then solved through direct computation of the volume integrals. This procedure is found possible in hydrodynamics where the speed of sound is very large and the flow velocities are small. In spite of the fact that the frontal section of the bodies has the same area, the analysis shows that a streamlined body is able to produce a pressure signal one order of magnitude lower than that generated by a bluff geometry. The separate analysis of the loading noise and of the quadrupole one has shown that the former is larger than the latter in case of 3D-shaped bluff body (sphere and cube), whereas the opposite is true in case of a streamlined body. A preliminary analysis between the case of an elongated square cylinder and a cube, shows that the persistence of a two-dimensionally shaped wake when compared to a three-dimensional one contributes to increase the quadrupole part of the radiated noise

The culture of the project in view of new synergies for the (r)evolution of the healthcare sector

The contemporary era, defined by Schwad (2015) as the "Fourth Industrial Revolution '' is the era that is outlined on the theme of major innovations and a growth of technologies of exponential type. At the social level, we are witnessing a progressive aging of the population, aging or rejuvenation, as some would argue (OECD, 2020). Technological growth and innovation is evolving the standards of health in which the population falls, is reshaping life expectancy and with it, also the age of seniority. Technological growth and population increase bring with them clear concerns about health management: we will face an increasing number of chronic diseases, and the demand for higher standards of personalized care, precision medicine, regenerative medicine, all of which will increase demands and put great stress on our health systems. The two years marked by the Covid-19 pandemic have already provided us with a demonstration of the consequences associated with extremes of demand for care. The Fourth Industrial Revolution, which holds the advent of Information Technologies and Artificial Intelligence, tells us of a future that will see an increasing interaction between humans, machines and computational intelligences, to alleviate us and empower our existence. This era will also speak about the increasingly imperative need to assert in the design treatment the component of acceptance and exaltation of human values in order to mitigate the possible outcomes of human alienation in the face of indefinable technological availability. Also in this case we can refer to the examples of degenerations resulting from the Covid-19 pandemic, with generalizing crisis phenomena and dismissive visions from the surrounding reality, such as the No-Vax, movements or other phenomena of technological alienation as in the case of the increase in the percentage of adolescents now in a cycle of self-induced isolation. Considering the areas of light and shadow of the challenges of our future, it is clear how we will need the increasingly synergistic action of the various disciplines of human knowledge, in order to arrive at the delineation of a correct exploitation of human values. With regard to this, the discipline of design, understood as that discipline useful to generate with efficiency, a bridge between technological innovation and human interaction, will be fundamental as able to bring positive and empathic elements to the design, to derive a generalized improvement in the quality of life, and in the case of healthcare, of care. Our research highlights the etymologically new figure of the "Medical Designer" and asserts in the design process new functions on the theme of medical devices: among them, the theme of autonomy and automation. In full response to the "trend" and aimed at assimilating to the already established potential of industries, they will be crucial elements of designs and investments of new devices. The research that derives from it has had practical implications arriving at the definition of forms of care that subjugate in a single device both the function of reading parameters, and the function of administration of care

A STUDY ON THE SKILLS GAP ANALYSIS IN THE JORDANIAN TOURISM SECTOR

According to the national development plans, the Jordanian tourism sector needs to be updated in order to meet international qualitative standards. To achieve this goal, one of the expected actions to be undertaken is the definition and the implementation of innovative professional profiles that should be integrated within the whole supply chain, and the updating of the related study plans. In order to address this demand, the research aimed to produce a skills gap analysis of the Jordanian tourism, hospitality, and heritage education system, which should highlight sets of innovative and underdeveloped skills for the tackled sectors, and the relative academic paths. The research also aimed to understand the actual offering of the Jordanian education system and to compare it with the requirements of the labor market. Although different plans have been developed, their implementation is still not fully exploited to achieve the desired transformation of the reference sector. By exploiting mixed research techniques, both quantitative and qualitative, it has been possible to understand the actual offeri ng of the Jordanian education system and to compare it with the requirements of the labor market: these activities represent the needed basis to produce the demanded skills gap analysis, which is also part of this contribution

Advances in spinal cord imaging in multiple sclerosis

The spinal cord is frequently affected in multiple sclerosis (MS), causing motor, sensory and autonomic dysfunction. A number of pathological abnormalities, including demyelination and neuroaxonal loss, occur in the MS spinal cord and are studied in vivo with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). The aim of this review is to summarise and discuss recent advances in spinal cord MRI. Advances in conventional spinal cord MRI include improved identification of MS lesions, recommended spinal cord MRI protocols, enhanced recognition of MRI lesion characteristics that allow MS to be distinguished from other myelopathies, evidence for the role of spinal cord lesions in predicting prognosis and monitoring disease course, and novel post-processing methods to obtain lesion probability maps. The rate of spinal cord atrophy is greater than that of brain atrophy (−1.78% versus −0.5% per year), and reflects neuroaxonal loss in an eloquent site of the central nervous system, suggesting that it can become an important outcome measure in clinical trials, especially in progressive MS. Recent developments allow the calculation of spinal cord atrophy from brain volumetric scans and evaluation of its progression over time with registration-based techniques. Fully automated analysis methods, including segmentation of grey matter and intramedullary lesions, will facilitate the use of spinal cord atrophy in trial designs and observational studies. Advances in quantitative imaging techniques to evaluate neuroaxonal integrity, myelin content, metabolic changes, and functional connectivity, have provided new insights into the mechanisms of damage in MS. Future directions of research and the possible impact of 7T scanners on spinal cord imaging will be discussed

Mini-FLOTAC as an alternative, non-invasive diagnostic tool for Schistosoma mansoni and other trematode infections in wildlife reservoirs

Schistosomiasis and food-borne trematodiases are not only of major public health concern, but can also have profound implications for livestock production and wildlife conservation. The zoonotic, multi-host nature of many digenean trematodes is a significant challenge for disease control programmes in endemic areas. However, our understanding of the epidemiological role that animal reservoirs, particularly wild hosts, may play in the transmission of zoonotic trematodiases suffers a dearth of information, with few, if any, standardised, reliable diagnostic tests available. We combined qualitative and quantitative data derived from post-mortem examinations, coprological analyses using the Mini-FLOTAC technique, and molecular tools to assess parasite community composition and the validity of non-invasive methods to detect trematode infections in 89 wild Hubert’s multimammate mice (Mastomys huberti) from northern Senegal

Gemcitabine plus vinorelbine in advanced non-small cell lung cancer: a phase II study of three different doses

Our aim was to study the activity and toxicity of the gemcitabine plus vinorelbine (Gem Vin) combination and to identify the optimal dose. Previously untreated patients aged < 70 years, with stage IV or IIIb (not candidates for radiotherapy) non-small cell lung cancer were eligible. Studied dose-levels of Gem Vin, administered on days 1 and 8 every 3 weeks, were (mg m–2): level I = 1000/25; level II = 1200/25; level III = 1000/30; level IV = 1200/30. A feasibility study was performed at each dose-level, followed by a single-stage phase II study. Dose-level IV was unfeasible because of grade 4 neutropenia. Overall, out of 126 patients enrolled in phase II studies, there were one complete and 32 partial responses (response rate 26%: 95% CI 18–34%). Response rates were 27.9%, 21.4% and 29.3% at levels I, II and III, respectively. The treatment was well tolerated. Toxicity was less frequent and severe at level I. Overall median survival was 33 weeks (95% CI 28–40). Descriptive quality of life analysis showed that patients with a worse baseline global health status score tended to drop out of the study earlier than those with a better score. Gem Vin is feasible at different doses. It is sufficiently active and well tolerated. A phase III study to compare the effect on quality of life of Gem Vin (level I) vs cisplatin-based chemotherapy is ongoing. © 2000 Cancer Research Campaig

Modulation of 5-fluorouracil as adjuvant systemic chemotherapy in colorectal cancer: the IGCS-COL multicentre, randomised, phase III study

The aims of this multicentre, randomised phase III trial were to evaluate: ( 1) the role of levamisol (LEV); and ( 2) the role of folinic acid ( FA), added to 5-fluorouracil (5FU) in the adjuvant treatment of colorectal cancer. Patients with histologically proven, radically resected stage II or III colon or rectal cancer were eligible. The study had a 2 x 2 factorial design with four treatment arms: ( a) 5FU alone, (b) 5FU+LEV, ( c) 5FU+FA, ( d) 5FU+LEV+FA, and two planned comparisons, testing the role of LEV and of FA, respectively. From March 1991, to September 1998, 1327 patients were randomised. None of the two comparisons resulted in a significant disease-free (DFS) or overall (OAS) survival advantage. The hazard ratio (HR) of relapse was 0.89 (95% confidence intervals (CI): 0.73 - 1.09) for patients receiving FA and 0.99 ( 95% CI 0.80 - 1.21) for those receiving LEV; corresponding HRs of death were 1.02 ( 95% CI: 0.80 - 1.30) and 0.94 ( 95% CI 0.73 - 1.20). Nonhaematological toxicity ( all grade vomiting, diarrhoea, mucositis, congiuntivitis, skin, fever and fatigue) was significantly worse with FA, while all other toxicities were similar. In the present trial, there was no evidence that the addition of FA or LEV significantly prolongs DFS and OAS of radically resected colorectal cancer patients